Scruffy Shih Tzus & more

"We have to put dogs down on Friday afternoon because of overcrowding. Thought you might be interested in a few small dogs."

They were in an outdoor kennel together. Papa Smurf has been neutered, has had one eye surgically removed, has no upper teeth, has one snaggletooth on the bottom, has some fatty tumors, and just wants to be a good senior citizen. Smurfette is younger, chunkier, needy by comparison, has no leash manners, and needs to feel secure so we will give her some time to settle in and realize she isn't going to be dumped again. She also has a fatty tumor. These two were neglected as evidenced by their coats of matted, clumped, dread locked fur. One clump of matted fur was the size of a jelly filled donut, which means I won't be eating any jelly filled donuts for awhile, and there were so many clumps and mats we couldn't tell if they were male or female at first. Boy, did they stink!

Ripley is a Jack Russell mix, very friendly, lousy on a leash, quiet for a JR mix, and very capable of climbing a six foot fence - he's managed it twice so far.

Chico was found lying between two dead dogs on a back road. He's a chihuahua/dachshund mix with a defensive attitude that could easily become aggression if not handled properly. He's noisy, needy, and quick to use his mouth when he's not calling the shots. He is learning there's a better way to make friends and quarantee his kibble and a roof over his head.

Tess is a wirehair mix about 4 years old. She has a unique look to her, and she is heartworm positive. She has no aggressive tendencies so far, and needs some groceries as her backbone and hip bones are readily palpable.

Jackie is maybe a basenji mix about six months old. She is housebroken, learned sit in nothing flat, learned to walk on a leash in record time, and has shown no aggressive tendencies. She was dumped, covered with fleas and flea dermatitis, and a rash on her belly which she had been scratching and made herself raw. She's just a great little girl.

Then's there's Rusty, now called Barney, a senior beagle, neutered, housebroken, and just a good natured, easy going, guy that loves to eat, but is now on a diet. One of the volunteers at animal control had fostered him and could no longer keep him, and because of his age and the overfill capacity, he was going to be on the list for euthanasia. We were pulled aside and asked if we could take him into the rescue, so we did.

We have 40 rescue dogs right now, and each and every time a kennel empties, the phone rings or someone emails and asks for help. Guess that's just the way it's supposed to be.

Apollo, the Malamute

"His whole back was moving!" That's what the lady at animal control told us when we went to meet a malamute they emailed us about. The owner had dropped the dog off because she didn't have enough money to take him to a vet and thought animal control might be able to help him. Apollo had been tied outside 24/7 in the heat and humidity and developed hot spots, and had no flea control medication on him. He reached around and chewed the irritated spots and had learned how to lean into a fence or doghouse and rub the areas. Maggots were all over his back from between his shoulder blades all the way down his back and over his buttocks. Actually, the maggots probably saved him from dying of gangrene, but he was so badly infected, swollen, and very very sick.

Animal control has a policy of putting down a sick animal immediately, but the girls took him to a vet anyway, much to the irritation of their boss. They got hold of us because they didn't want to see this 115 pound, extremely well housebroken, gentle giant be euthanized, nor did they want to get fired for defying the rules.

So, Apollo came home with me. There were a few problems to deal with. One was that he was extremely overweight. Another was his ability to reach around and chew on himself. Third was the fact that the back was so raw, he was getting pretty darn grouchy about being treated.

I put him on a diet and exercise program, especially since he has to be hand walked so he can't scratch his back on a fence or roll on the ground. We put one cone on him and had to add another one as he also had learned to destroy one to the point where he could reach around and chew on himself.

Now the biggie - the raw area. I used to work for a doctor who not only celebrated his birthday once a month with cake and champagne for everyone in the building, but truly believed that no medicine should be prescribed that tasted bad or caused discomfort. I have applied that particular theory to my work with animals. I started using my "secret sauce" horse medicine on his back and within three days he quit caring whether we touched him where he is healing. I can now run my hand over the affected areas with no negative response from him - much better than having him snark around to bite. He's losing weight and actually is showing some muscle tone in his hips and legs.

Since the last post

Goliath had a 2 1/2 hour surgery with a dramatic improvement in his heart function. He returns to the hospital on October 6 for a repeat echocardiogram. Goliath is available for adoption starting this week, and my biggest concern is that he goes to a family that will allow him to be a dog and not be overly protective in light of his past history. Goliath is not the type to become a couch potato - he thinks he's a hunter and a farm dog - let him explore, investigate, play with the cats, chase butterflies, play with his mentor, Jessi - but don't expect him to sit in your lap or watch soaps on the couch with you. It was very difficult to keep him from running or jumping for the 10 days after the surgery, especially since they had to ligate his jugular vein on the right side and he couldn't wear a collar till it healed. A harness was of little or no help, so we opted for house confinement. He was so happy to get outside again!

Sapir, the female mini-Aussie mix that looked like a zucchini when she was pregnant, had five pups - two were stillborn and one died shortly after birth. There is one female and one male still alive, but we have been cautioned by the vet that once they are weaned and no longer have their mother's immunity, they will likely die. Time will tell the outcome. They are 3 1/2 weeks old.

Local animal controls have called and emailed asking us to come to visit, meet, and hopefully take as many dogs as possible. One week we took in 9 dogs, another week 8, and this week 6. We have one dog leaving for a new home tomorrow, but this afternoon a lady who adopted one of our rescues a short time ago called and said her neighbor had taken in a stray collie who is skin and bones and killed a farmer's chicken, so she is hiding the dog, not only from the farmer, but from her landlord. Because of it's emaciated state, she knows if it goes to animal control it will be destroyed immediately. The empty kennel will be empty only long enough to disinfect for the new arrival.

The Week Ahead

Goliath is scheduled for heart surgery on August 28. While we wait to see how things go for him, life in the rescue goes on full bore. The on-site adoption event yesterday found homes for two of the dogs at this kennel, so we have a little available space. It didn't last for long because the phone rang late on Saturday. It was a local animal control and shelter with a list of 6 adult dogs and 3 puppies that need to find space elsewhere within the next 2-3 days, or face euthanasia. The person who called is making herself available this afternoon so that we can rescue as many as possible.

But before all of this, we took in a gorgeous and playful bundle of fur about 8 weeks old, and the rescue coordinator called to say that there was a pregnant Aussie mix female that she just couldn't leave at another animal control facility. Unfortunately, the female was given live virus vaccines and wormed at a critical point in the development of the puppies, so a veterinarian has warned us that the pups will either be stillborn or possibly suffer birth defects and die. She also has kennel cough which she picked up in her three weeks at the shelter in spite of her vaccination.

We do have one dog to board for the neighbors, who are taking a much deserved brief vacation.

It's going to be a busy week - new dogs, heart surgery, maybe a blessed event and prayerfully maybe at least one pup will be okay.

There's a plan somewhere because every time a dog leaves, the phone rings, or someone stops by with a new candidate for the rescue. Several people have asked how I can foster and part with the dogs --- I have to look forward and move forward, and celebrate when we find homes for the current residents.

The Pool Party

Goliath went to a pool party for dogs and their humans over the weekend. The proceeds are targeted for his surgery.

My goal, as his foster mom, is to let him live as normal a life as possible under the circumstances - to be a puppy and explore the world, keeping in mind he has to learn to behave himself as well.

Update on Goliath

Goliath went to the teaching hospital for his evaluation last week. He has severe pulmonic stenosis (narrowing of the pulmonic valve), right ventricular hypertrophy (thickening of the walls of the right ventricle), and tricuspid regurgitation (backflow of blood scross the tricuspid valve). Without treatment he will progress to congestive heart failure and pass away.

Our rescue group is trying to raise the $2500 needed for balloon valvuloplasty to correct the pulmonic stenosis. We have entered him in a "cutest dog" photo contest in hopes of winning one of the weekly monetary prizes.

This little guy has fought to survive neglect, has fought to survive in spite of the fact that he was probably a premie and way smaller than the other pups in his litter.

The beauty of this is that Goliath knows nothing of his problem. He is happy, playful, and just wants to explore and enjoy life. Radar, a cat, is his new best friend. Jessi and Koko are teaching him to put his nose to the ground and hunt. Koko is also teaching him to herd the cats to the old barn.

We will just have to see what happens from here on out, meanwhile giving him the chance to be a normal puppy, or as normal as possible under the circumstances.

The Puppy Dump

Why people just dump a litter of puppies anywhere is beyond me. Granted, most shelters and rescues are filled to capacity right now, but leaving them off where they have shelter and food, regardless of the ultimate outcome, is better than what could have happened to the three litters we recently acquired.

The first litter, age 6 weeks, was dumped at a foreclosed home site. Fortunately for the puppies, Charlie Brown, Sally, and Lucy, a neighbor spotted them and turned them in to animal control. However, by this time they were literally skin and bones, had been eating their own waste to survive, and two of them had two feet in the grave and the other two feet on banana peels. We had gone to pick up another dog and spotted them. We could not leave them there in that condition, because with the over crowding, euthanasia would have been the result. They are alive today and are now thriving.

The second litter was left in an airline carrier crate which was left outside, while the owner left town for three days. A relative was supposed to come by and take care of the pups. No one showed up for two days, and there was monsoon like rain event. The puppies sat in the crate in their waste and water till someone called animal control. We were asked to help out because they needed special care. They were too weak to support their own weight and stained from the urine and feces they had been living in. Ethan and Ellie are also thriving and ready to look for new homes.

The third litter was dumped in a blackberry patch about 4 feet from a main roadway. The lady who found them routinely goes to pick wild blackberries and raspberries in that location. She figured that someone knew she was there about every 2 days and dumped them there figuring she would find them. She did manage to find homes for two of the three pups. We have Halle Blackberry, and she is teaching Goliath how to treat a lady.

The lady who found Halle said she called several organizations, and I was the only one who returned her call. One organization that she did talk to literally accused her of lying about finding the pups.

No matter how thin resources are stretched, no matter how full we are, I tell myself to not be judgemental, but rather be glad someone had the nerve to admit they needed help and a place to take a litter of puppies.